Arbitration
A core tenet of arbitration is its finality. In arbitration, this principle has become enshrined in the doctrine of functus officio, which forbids arbitrators from altering an award after the award has been rendered. Yet, the doctrine has several exceptions. One is the clarification exception, which allows an arbitration panel to clarify an ambiguous final award. Syed S. Ahmad, Patrick M. McDermott, and David Costello, attorneys at Hunton Andrews Kurth LLP, discuss the doctrine of functus officio and a U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit decision adopting the clarification exception in their “Feature” article, “Arbitration of Insurance Disputes: Functus Officio and the Clarification Exception.”
Business Interruption Claims
Quantifying a policyholder's business interruption loss is a contentious issue in the wake of wide-impact catastrophic events. Methods of calculating business interruption losses vary by jurisdiction and policy language. In our next “Feature” article, “Hurricane Florence: Evaluating Business Interruption Claims Following a Large-Scale Disaster,”Joseph D. Jean, Peter M. Gillon, and Matthew F. Putorti, attorneys at Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP, discuss methods for evaluating business interruption claims after a disaster.
Focus On:
In this issue's “Focus On” column, “How Can Insurance Coverage Begin Weeks After a Policy's Effective Date?,” Steven A. Meyerowitz, Esq., the Editor-in-Chief of the Insurance Coverage Law Report and the Director of FC&S Legal: The Insurance Coverage Law Information Center, explains a U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit decision that coverage under an insurance policy began about two weeks after the “Policy Effective Date” – and about two weeks after the insured was involved in a truck accident.
And More…
We also have the “best of the best” Case Law and Legislative/Regulatory Developments from FC&S Legal, as always written and analyzed by Steven A. Meyerowitz, and my Industry News column.
Enjoy the issue!
Victoria Prussen Spears
Editor, Insurance Coverage Law Report
Associate Director, FC&S Legal
Victoria Spears
Victoria Prussen Spears is senior vice president of Meyerowitz Communications Inc., a law firm marketing communications consulting company. A graduate of Sarah Lawrence College and Brooklyn Law School, Ms. Spears was an attorney at a leading New York City law firm before joining Meyerowitz Communications. She may be contacted at [email protected].